Gamers take pride in their achievements. Hundreds of hours spent grinding in a game will return powerful high-level characters, rare loot, and other in-game items. Sometimes these items enhance a player’s abilities, other times they are completely cosmetic and change how a character looks. Regardless, virtual items selling for real-world money is no longer a novel concept.
Over the past few decades, we have seen some virtual items sell for enormous amounts. Let’s take a look at several instances of this in some of the world’s most popular games.
Blue Party Hat, Runescape – $4,000
Runescape is a free-to-play MMO game (massive multiplayer online) that is known for its simplistic graphics and gameplay which revolves around leveling up your various skills. The Blue Party Hat is an item that was given away for free during a 2001 Christmas event, making it even more fascinating that these items are now valued so highly.
Like many freebie items, players threw them away in large numbers without a second thought. Now, these items have a certain rarity and exclusiveness to them which helps them keep a consistent value of around $4,000. That’s $4,000 for a very small item in a low-polygon game that offers no competitive advantage whatsoever.
Revenant Supercarrier, EVE Online -$9,000
EVE Online is a space-themed MMO that has been running for almost 20 years. The game is known for its massive starship battles, in-depth role-playing, and grind mechanics that have the players treating it as if it was a second job, not a video game. The starships that are available to use in the game take enormous amounts of in-game currency and resources to build, meaning they have real-world value.
Back in 2013, there were only two of these Revenant Supercarriers in existence due to the stringent requirements and resources needed to build one. The remaining one became even more valuable after its brother with total damages totaling almost $20,000. The last remaining Revenant Supercarrier was later sold for $9,000. Unlike other cosmetic only in-game items, this ship is actually very useful and powerful.
Treasure Island, Entropia – $26,500
While some of these virtual items have little use or appeal, this one certainly set a standard when it was sold back in 2004. The game Entropia is an MMO that allows players to socialize, go treasure hunting, defeat monsters, gather resources, mine, and take part in other activities. There are numerous virtual locations to explore and hang out in, and one of these areas is called Treasure Island.
In 2004, the Entropia developers held a virtual auction. When they listed the Treasure Island location, a player spent $26,500 to acquire the property. The player was given the deed to the land and was then able to do in-game actions like tax players to search for treasure there. Some people reading this article may be wondering, what’s the point of owning virtual land?
Well, buyers could very well be looking at the long-term value, especially . It’s likely that VR is the future of gaming, which means players will spend a lot more time traversing digital cities and landscapes. These in-game locations could potentially be even more valuable to own in the future. Then there are numerous potential benefits to brands and marketers who can use these areas like virtual billboards for their products.
Ethereal Flames Pink War Dog, DOTA 2 – $38,000
DOTA 2 is a widely popular PC game that has fans from all over the world. Stories of in-game items selling for unbelievable amounts are all too common in this community. While the game is free for players, there are many “skins” that will change the look of your character and establish you as a “much more dedicated” or “much more skilled” player. Some of these skins have become quite coveted.
DOTA 2 utilizes in-game pets that do things like deliver items. One in particular, the Pink War Dog, has become very valuable because there are only five in existence. The developers first set these War Dogs to be created with random coloring and effects, before quickly changing it to player-determined coloring. The special pink hue was outside the parameters the developers set, meaning there would never be another pink version and making these very rare. So rare that they are worth $38,000.
AWP Dragon Lore Sniper Rifle Skin, CS:GO – $61,000
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has been an esports staple for nearly a decade. This fast-paced FPS (first-person shooter) title is loved for its realistic, commando-like gameplay that pits two teams of players against each other with one objective. The skill of these players is often they have for their guns and melee weapons.
A special, one-of-a-kind skin was awarded to a winner of a CS:GO tournament. This skin was called the AWP Dragon Lore skin and featured a fire-breathing dragon on it. Naturally, it was highly sought after, as players knew there would only ever be one in existence. According to PC Gamer, it was listed on a popular CS:GO auction website, where it eventually sold for an astounding $61,000.
Club Neverdie, Entropia – $635,000
Next, we have an inspiring tale of virtual real estate investing. In 2010, Jon Jacobs of England sold the virtual property Club Neverdie for an eye-popping $635,000. While this is impressive in itself, the story of how this sale came to be is worth hearing.
A few years before this moment, Jacobs had remortgaged his house to afford the , already a steep investment. His plan was to fill the location with rare items and encourage more participation in the virtual club. Eventually, it became a popular venue and, after Jacobs was satisfied with his achievement, he felt it was time to move on.
He decided to sell the virtual property in chunks to other investors for a total of $635,000. According to Guinness World Records, it was one of the most valuable virtual items in the world at the time. This wouldn’t be the last time the game Entropia would make headlines either. In recent years, the entire in-game planet of Calypso was sold for a staggering $6,000,000.